Whether he deserved it or not is one question. But he certainly should have expected it. How many times has he been suspended or fined for what he’s said? He was foolish if he thought he’d get away with what he posted on FB and Twitter.
Your post at #3 does not express that sentiment.
By the way, one should not have to surrender their First Amendment rights as long as they are not discussing it on the job, whether you are an RN working in a hospital, or a sports announcer.
But the simple fact of life is that if you engage in social media, even personally, it is a given that makes you vulnerable to your employer’s whim.
Once that box is open (and it IS clearly wide open now) where does it stop?
If the liberals say that disagreeing with the basic concept of anthropogenic global warning is a hate crime worthy of censure, and someone takes video of me saying it and posts it to social media, is it acceptable and expected that I should get fired for that?